---
title: Result filtering
description: Result filtering controls how many results are returned and the minimum score required. To filter results by metadata attributes like folder or category, refer to Metadata.
image: https://developers.cloudflare.com/dev-products-preview.png
---

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# Result filtering

Result filtering controls how many results are returned and the minimum score required. To filter results by metadata attributes like folder or category, refer to [Metadata](https://developers.cloudflare.com/ai-search/configuration/indexing/metadata/).

## Match threshold

The `match_threshold` sets the minimum vector similarity score that a chunk must meet to be included in the results. Threshold values range from `0` to `1`. The threshold filters on the vector similarity score, not the fused score returned in the response.

* A higher threshold means stricter filtering, returning only highly similar matches.
* A lower threshold allows broader matches, increasing recall but possibly reducing precision.

## Maximum number of results

The `max_num_results` setting controls the number of top-matching chunks returned. The maximum allowed value is 50.

* Use a higher value if you want to synthesize across multiple documents. However, providing more input to the model can increase latency and cost.
* Use a lower value if you prefer concise answers with minimal context.

## How they work together

1. Your query is embedded using the configured embedding model.
2. The search index is queried. For [hybrid search](https://developers.cloudflare.com/ai-search/configuration/indexing/hybrid-search/), vector and keyword results are fused into a single ranked list.
3. Chunks with a vector similarity score below `match_threshold` are filtered out.
4. The filtered results are limited to `max_num_results` and passed into the generation step as context.

If no results meet the threshold, AI Search will not generate a response.

If [reranking](https://developers.cloudflare.com/ai-search/configuration/retrieval/reranking/) is enabled, a separate `reranking.match_threshold` can be configured to filter chunks by their reranking score.

## Per-request override

These values can be configured at the instance level or overridden per request:

TypeScript

```

const instance = env.AI_SEARCH.get("my-instance");


const results = await instance.search({

  messages: [{ role: "user", content: "What is Cloudflare?" }],

  ai_search_options: {

    retrieval: {

      match_threshold: 0.5,

      max_num_results: 10,

    },

  },

});


```

Explain Code

```json
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/directory/","name":"Directory"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/ai-search/","name":"AI Search"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"/ai-search/configuration/","name":"Configuration"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"item":{"@id":"/ai-search/configuration/retrieval/","name":"Retrieval"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":5,"item":{"@id":"/ai-search/configuration/retrieval/result-filtering/","name":"Result filtering"}}]}
```